Process of producing carbureted water gas



Sept. 13, 1932. H. M. KOPP OF PRODUCING CARBURETED WATER GAS PROCESS Filed Feb. 21, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR awa 7m ATTOR Y Sept. 13, 1932. M, KOPP 1,876,965

PROCESS OF PRODUCING CARBURETED WATER GAS I Filed Feb. 21, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ma i P341 INVENTOR aowumaw 4% 60 I ATTOR -Y Patented Sept. 13, 1932 UNITED STATES l HAROLD M. KOPP, OF WATER/DOWN, CONNECTICUT PROCESS OF PRODUCING CARBURETED WATER GAS Application filed February 21, 1930. Serial No. 430,236.

This invention relates to the manufacture of carburetedwater gas, and more particularly to an apparatus for utilizing the residual gas tar from a water gas apparatus for enriching the quality of the gas produced.

One object of this invention is to provide an attachment for installation upon a standard water gas set for passing residual water gas tar through the entire generator fuel bed during the down-run thereof.

A further object is to provide an apparatus of the above nature which will be relatively simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, easy to install and manipulate, and ver efficient and durable in use.

V ith these and other objects in view there has been disclosed on the accompanying drawings one form in-which the invention may be conveniently embodied in practice.

Fig. 1 represents a diagrammatic view of the apparatus and showing a vertical sectional view of the generator.

Fig. 2 is a side view, partly in section, of the down-steam casing and tar-injecting nozzle.

Fig. 3 is a bottom view of the same.

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view of one of the tar injecting nozzles.

Fig. 5 is a bottom view of one of the spreading plugs for the tar injecting nozzle shown in Fig. 4.

Former apparatus used for the manufacture of carbureted water gas was wasteful of the solid fuel burned in the generator and of the carbureting oil cracked in the carburetor.

Moreover, the residualtar recovered from the Water gas produced, constituted a by-product of low value due to the small demand therefor in the trade. Y

By means of the present invention,'an.ap-

paratus has been provided by means of which the residual by-product tar produced in a water gas plant is injected into the generator to be cracked for enriching the blue gas formed therein, thus reducing the amount of fuel consumed in the generator and lessening the amount of carbureting oil required. The tar is introduced into the top of the generator by injecting it with steam during the down run step of the operation and in the form of a spray, and is cracked during its passage gas tar are produced per thousand feet of gas made. By means of the present invention, all of this tar may be cracked into useful combustible gas, and anadditional quantity of tar which may be purchased at a low cost may also be utilized. For example, if .6 gallons of gas tar per thousand cubic feet is inj ected into the generator, the heating value of the blue gas will be increased by from 290 to 340350 B. t. 11. per cubic foot.

Referring now to the drawings in which like reference numerals denote corresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 10 indicates a generator of a carbureted water gas set of any standard recent construction, said generator bein connected in the usual manner with a car ureter, superheater, and other accessory apparatus, not shown.

Generator The generator 10 is lined with a wall of fire brick 11, and is provided near its bottom with a grate 12 for supporting a bed 13 of solid fuel, such as coke or coal. The bed of fuel 13 is adapted to be heated to a high temperature by-means of a stream of air introduced into the apparatus through an air-blast pipe 14 below the level of the grate 12. The generator 10 is connected to the carbureter by means of upper and lower gas connection pipes 15 and 16, respectively, said pipes having suitable controlling valves, not-shown.

V Steam is adapted to be admitted to the generator by means of an up-steam pipe 17 and 'a down-steam pipe 18. The bed of fuel 13 is adapted to be replenished from time to time through a charging door 19 of usual construction located at the top of the generator. The usual cleaning doors'20 and 21 are also provided above and below the grate 12, respectively.

Tar injecting system The residual tar from the water gas set is adapted to be stored in a tank 22 from which it is drawn through a pipe 23 to a steam operated tar pump 24. The pump 24 is adapted to maintain a constant pressure (about 100 lbs. per square inch) in a pipe line 25, said pressure being controlled by a pressure regulator 26 having an indicating gauge 27 connected therewith. A preheater 28 is provided in the pipe line for use in case the tar employed is heavy and viscous and does not vaporize readily, said preheater being provided with a bypass 29 for use with tar of low viscosity and high volatility and controlled by valves 30, 31, and 32, respectively. The preheater 28 is adapted to be connected with a source of heat, such as steam, by means of valve-controlled pipes 33 and 34, respectively.

The preheater 28 is connected at its top to a pipe 35 leading to a strainer 36, which in turn is connected to a pipe 37 having an operating valve 38. The amount of tar injected into the generator is measured by a meter 39 connected on one side to the pipe 37 and on its other side to the tar injection pipe 40 having a check valve 41 to prevent return flow. The tar injection pipe is ,joined by a T-connection 42 to a down-steam casing 43 having a side member 43a into which the downsteam pipe 18 is threaded. The tar passes into the casing 43 through an exteriorly threaded pipe 435 connected atits outer end to the T-connection 42 and having a head 44 at its inner end. The head 44 is provided with a plurality of tapered apertures for receiving a like number of tapered detachable nozzles 45, five in this instance.

In order to produce a whirling rotary tar spray, each of the nozzles 45 is provided at its lower end with a socket for receiving a cylindrical plug 46 having a series, four in this instance, of radial spiral slots 47. The nozzle head 44 is adjustably supported within the casing 43 by means of a bushing 48 threaded into the outer end of the casing 43, and having an outer hexagonal flange 49. The casing 43 is adapted to be attached to the conical upper section 50 of the generator, in alignment with the-downsteam opening 51, as by bolts 52, passed through a flange 53 In order to clean out the nozzle head 44 and nozzles 45 after the supply. of tar has been shut ofi by the operating valve 38 for preventing carbonization, provision is made of a steam purge line 54 controlled by a valv 55 and having a check valve 56.

Operation blowing a stream of air from the air-blast pipe 14 upwardly through the bed of fuel, the products of combustion being conducted out through the upper gas connection pipe 15 to the carbureter, superheater, and the stack.

When the proper temperature has been reached, as indicated by pyrometers, not shown, the stream of air will be shut off by closing the air-blast pipe 14, and the machine will then be ready to make gas. At this time steam will be admitted to the generator 10 through the up-steam pipe 17 and will pass upwardly through the fuel bed 13, where it will interact with the hot carbon of the fuel and produce what is known as blue gas. This blue gas will then pass out through the upper gas pipe 15 to the carbureter where it will be combined with cracked illuminants produced from oil introduced into said carbureter by,means of a spray, said oil being cracked by striking the hot checkerbrick therein. The combined gases will then pass along to the superheater where they .become fixedl in the usual manner. From the superheater, the carbureted water gas is passed along through the usual cleaning and scrubbing apparatus, not shown, and finally delivered to the gas holders, not shown.

After the desired interval, the up-run valves will be reversed and the up-steam valve shut oil. The valve in the upper gas connection 15 will then be closed, and the valve in the lower gas connection 16 opened. The machine will then be ready for the down-run. At this point the down-steam pipe 18 and the tar operating valve 38 will be opened, causing a whirling mixed spray of steam and tar to enter the top of the generator through the opening 51.

The atomized mixture of tar and steam will pass downwardly through the hot bed and substantially all of the tar will be:

cracked at high temperature into various fixed hydrocarbons which are incondensible under ordinary conditions of temperature and pressure, and which serve to enrich the blue gas. The residue from the tar which is not cracked will remain in the fuel bed 13 in the'form of carbon, coke, or lampblack, and will be burned out on the next air blow. A few seconds before the end of the down-run, the tar-operatingvalve 38 will be closed and the steam-purge line 54 opened by means of the valve 55, thus completely cleaning out any tar which may be left in the nozzles 44 and preventing carbonization.

The valves will then again be reversed as for a regular up-run as previously described, the steam pipe 17 remaining open just long enough to clear out any residual gas remaining in the generator. The gas-making cycle is then complete, and the fuel bed is ready to be again heated up by another blow. If necessary, the fuelbed may at this time be replcnished by opening the charging door 19 to bring the fuel up to the required level.

In one test conducted by the inventor'on two successive days under similar operating conditions resulting in the production of about a million and a half cubic feet of carbureted water gas per day, the amount of saving obtained by the introduction of the residual tar into the generator was as follows: coke 8311 lbs-value $37.40, oil 741 gals.-value $41.50, total saving $7 8.90. From this must be deducted the value of the 1050 gals. of tar used, 4 /46 per gal.$47.25, leaving a net saving of $31.55 per day or 2.01 per thousand cubic feet.

It will be understood that the products of the down-run through the generator, may or may not pass through the carbureter or superheater on their way to the purifying appa ratus and gas holder within the spirit and scope of the invention.

It will also be understood that the purge line valve 55 may, if desired, be allowed to remain partially open during the entire down-run to still further preheat the tar and produce a more thorough atomization thereof.

One advantage of the present invention is that the apparatus is extremely simple and requires very little attention to operate. In fact, if desired, the operating valves may be so incorporated with the regular automatic hydraulic controlled mechanism of the standard gas set that the whole apparatus will be made entirely automatic.

A further advantage is that the average heating value in B. t. u. of the finished gas may be maintained within narrower limits, and the checker-brick in the carbureter and superheater may be maintained at a more even temperature. This is probably due to the fact that the introduction of the tar into the generator reduces the cooling down of the fuel bed during the gas-making operation.

A further advantage is that the generator fuel bed will be maintained in better condition with less clinker formation, permitting longer runs to be made between cleaning out operations. This of course results in a material saving of labor. v

A still further advantage is that the gas made per run will be materially increased, resulting in larger production per machine, shorter running time, and a material saving of labor.

While there has been disclosed in this specification one form in which the invention may be embodied, it is to be understood that this form is shown for the purpose of illustration only, and that the invention is not to be limited to the specific disclosure but maybe modified and embodied in various other forms without departing from its spirit. In short, the invention includes all the modifications and embodiments coming within the scope of the following claims.

Having thus desired to secure batters Patent, is:

1. The process of generating combustlble gas by alternate air and steam blasting in a.

fixed gaseous hydrocarbons without excessive formation of lampblack.

2. The process of making carbureted water gas in an apparatus for generating combustible gas by alternate air and steam blasting in a gas generator having an open mixing space above a fuel bed, means for injecting atomized water gas residual tar into a whirling jet of steam and delivering the mixture into said space, a gas o'fl'take beneath said fuel bed, and a second gas ofl'take above said fuel bed,

which comprises upwardly air blasting said fuel bed to incandescence and subsequently passing steam and atomized water gas residual tar downwardly through said fuel bed to crack said water gas residual tar into fixed gaseous hydrocarbons without excessive formation of lampblack.

3. The process of manufacturing carbureted water gas which when carried out in a gas generator having an open mixing space above a fuel bed, means for injecting atomized heavy liquid hydrocarbons into a whirling jet of steam and delivering the mixture into said space, -a gas ofltake beneath said fuel bed, and a second gas ofitake above said fuel bed, comprises upwardly air blasting said fuel bed to incandescence and subse qu-ently passing steam and atomized heavy liquid hydrocarbons downwardly through said fuel bed to crack said heavy liquid hydrocarbons into fixed gaseous hydrocarbons without excessive formation of lampblack. In testimony whereof, I have aflixed my signature to this specification.

HAROLD M. KOPP.

fully described the invention, what is claimed as new, and for which it is 

